Sri Lanka backs Commonwealth cancer plan at Geneva health talks

The Minister of Health and Mass Media, Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa has attended the Commonwealth Health Coordination Forum held in Geneva, Switzerland, on the sidelines of the 79th World Health Assembly.

The forum brought together health ministers and senior health officials from Commonwealth countries, the Ministry of Health said in a statement. The forum was held under the theme “Shaping the future of cancer across the Commonwealth.”

The main objective of the forum was to develop a joint plan for cancer control among Commonwealth countries, based on the recommendations of the Lancet Oncology Commonwealth report.

The forum was organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat and chaired by former Guyanese Health Minister H.E. Leslie Ramsammy.

Minister Jayatissa represented Sri Lanka in his capacity as Minister of Health and Mass Media and as Chair of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia.

He was joined by Secretary to the Ministry of Health and Mass Media, Dr. Anil Jasinghe; Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Health and Mass Media, Dr. S. Sridharan; Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative in Geneva, Sumith Dassanayake; and several senior officials from Sri Lanka’s health sector.

The 79th World Health Assembly is being held at the World Health Organization headquarters in Geneva and will continue until 23 May.